


Rukia, Stop the Shower

by debbiechan



Category: Bleach
Genre: F/M, Gen, M/M, There are fish in a pond and fetuses, This was me trying to write happy fic in Dec 2016 before I left fandom in a huff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-01
Updated: 2017-04-01
Packaged: 2018-10-13 11:41:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,108
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10513056
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/debbiechan/pseuds/debbiechan
Summary: This fic is written for the IchiRuki Big Bang on Tumblr. Many thanks to Victoria, Jess, and Mica for allowing me the necessary exorcisms of ideas I’ve had in my head since writing my anti-Bleach-686-ending opus “Aizen Unbound.” (http://archiveofourown.org/works/10512945). This fic is set some twenty years even after 686 would have happened--had it not been literally erased by Aizen (in my aforementioned fic) and thirty years after “Aizen Unbound.” Ichigo and Rukia are monarchs of all the existing worlds, and Rukia has found a reason for an old-friends-from-all-worlds reunion.  She’s pregnant.Even as Soul King, Ichigo has much to learn about the true meaning of parenthood.Originally this fic was started for Jaina for her October 2007 birthday. I promised to have it ready for her after she scored her interview with Kubo in 2008, but here we are, nine years later, and all but the title and a few sections have been scrapped and revised. How peculiar fandom is, and how fascinating that 686 made so many artists revisit old muses.The manly men dance for reference: https://youtu.be/iwK21L-zqDM





	

**Rukia, Stop the Shower**

**By debbiechan**

_This fic is written for the IchiRuki Big Bang on Tumblr. Many thanks to Victoria, Jess, and Mica for allowing me the necessary exorcisms of ideas I’ve had in my head since writing my anti-Bleach-686-ending opus “Aizen Unbound.” (<http://archiveofourown.org/works/10512945>). This fic is set some twenty years even after 686 would have happened--had it not been literally erased by Aizen (in my aforementioned fic) and thirty years after “Aizen Unbound.” Ichigo and Rukia are monarchs of all the existing worlds, and Rukia has found a reason for an old-friends-from-all-worlds reunion.  She’s pregnant._

_Even as Soul King, Ichigo has much to learn about the true meaning of parenthood._

_Originally this fic was started for Jaina for her October 2007 birthday. I promised to have it ready for her after she scored her interview with Kubo in 2008, but here we are, nine years later, and all but the title and a few sections have been scrapped and revised. How peculiar fandom is, and how fascinating that 686 made so many artists revisit old muses._

_The manly men dance for reference:_ <https://youtu.be/iwK21L-zqDM>

_1._

“Presents before the birth?” Captain Ukitake, by accident, tossed a wrapped candy into the lake instead of a bread crust to feed his fish. “Americans are an optimistic people! In my family, it was bad luck to bring any gift to the home until the new soul had inhabited a body for at least seven days.”

“Presents like baby clothes, blankets and itsy bitsy socks!” exclaimed Rukia. She’d learned about the custom on a recent data-gathering trip to the Living World. “No presents for the mother. No monetary gifts. There’s partying—oh, I don’t see why Inoue can’t make a giant cake. Sometimes the cakes are funny—in the shape of a diaper with chocolate filling.”

“No.” Ichigo made a disgusted face.

“The women play games—like the one who comes closest to guessing the pregnant mother’s belly measurement wins a prize.” Rukia beamed at her next revelation. “Or women bring photos of themselves as babies, and everyone tries to guess who is who!”

“Sounds like stuff Inoue would like,” Ichigo said. “I can’t see Captain Sui-Feng getting into any of this.”

“Only women at these baby showers?” Ukitake leaned over the water and recovered the wrapped candy with his long fingers. “That doesn’t seem very progressive. I thought the two of you said this United States nation made quite an uproar about the equality of all peoples.”

For a long while on the lakeside grass, Ichigo had sat hugging his knees without much interest in Rukia’s report. At Ukitake’s last words, he stretched out his legs and shrugged off the stiffness of his shoulder muscles. “Eh, it’s all for show.  The more me and Rukia go to different countries, the more of the same I see—people in power do a lot of fancy talking about rights and justice, but people without power do a lot of simple struggling. Things don’t change very quickly, at least not as quickly as they should.”

“Ichigo,” Ukitake smiled. “It’s only been thirty years since you defeated Yhwach. You and Kuchiki-san are Soul King and Queen, and impatience seems somewhat…” A wider smile. “At odds with your immortality?”

“He gets bored when we get sent to interact with government-type people,” Rukia explained. “But back to what’s important--I want a baby shower.”

Ichigo threw himself back on the grass and slapped his forehead with both hands.

“Why is this party called a baby shower?” Ukitake asked.

“I have no idea,” Rukia said. “I can find out. But we can invite everyone in the Gotei to the Royal Realm, and Shutara can fashion her special clothes so our human friends can withstand the reiatsu there— “

“Or everyone can just come here to Ugendou.” Ukitake offered. “There’s ever so much room and no bothersome spiritual pressure for humans. There’s the lake. Orihime-chan can make a cake— “

“Not a poop-diaper cake, please.” Ichigo hadn’t taken his hands away from his eyes. “No one give Inoue ideas.”

“I’ll tell her to make cupcakes of every kind like those at her bakery,” Rukia said. “C’mon, Ichigo. It will be a celebration.” She patted her tummy where it was swollen as if she’d hidden a volley-ball under her shihakushou and wrapped her belt across the ball to hold it there. “We’ll advertise it as a big cultural awareness event and have wonderful stories to tell our child later.”

Ichigo exhaled a dramatic sigh. “I can’t stop you, can I?”

“And Captain?” Rukia went on. “If I may make one more request, sir? Would the 13th division send out the invitations? It’s considered rude for a person to throw herself a baby shower. At first I was going to send out a few handwritten notes, but— “

“I’d be most honored,” Ukitake answered, “to write them all myself.”

“First it was a few, eh?” Ichigo rolled sideways into the fetal position. “Now you’re going to invite Grimmjow and Ganju and everybody we know, and the 11th division is going to break tables, just like they always do.”

“Oh no, it will be a perfect party,” insisted Ukitake. “No alcohol and—“ He unwrapped the candy he had recovered from the lake and popped it into his mouth. “Just candy, cakes, and friendship. We’re the 13th division here!”

 

_2._

Late in the summer night, a black butterfly flew through an open second-story window and dropped a bright yellow envelope on the bedroom rug.  Yuzu would not find the invitation until cleaning the room two days later.

What was up with her brother now? She tore the envelope open.

Captain Ukitake’s note requested her presence at a baby shower in honor of Kuchiki Rukia at his estate.

_Please show at the town marker for the Onose River, Saturday, April 1, at noon. Bring your soul pass and a gift. A Senkaimon will open for you and other friends._

Yuzu plopped on the bed with the note in her lap. Here she sat in Ichigo’s old room, which had been unoccupied for years, and both nostalgia and dread struck her body like the first pangs of a heart attack she’d been taught to recognize—warm pressure in the chest, light-headedness, shortness of breath.

The Kurosaki Clinic had closed decades ago when her father took a job in pediatrics at Karakura Hospital and began to eat and sleep in his small office. “Please, take the whole house,” he had told his two daughters. “I’m good here—I can bother Ryuuken whenever I please!” Karin had stayed at home for a few years after graduating from college; she had competed in martial arts competitions all over the world, and some of the trophies were still downstairs. The trophy shelf covered the section of wall where Kurosaki Masaki’s giant poster once hung—the poster was in Dr. Kurosaki’s office, of course.  He still lived there. A Shinigami in an age-appropriate gigai designed by Urahara Kisuke.

How good it would be to see old friends like Mizuiro and Keigo again. Karin too—Yuzu rarely saw her these days. Karin had long ago moved to a fancy studio in Tokyo and was running her own dojo. Yuzu was alone today--her husband on call at the firehouse, her twin daughters in high school. The very idea of a new baby stretched the years so they felt like they’d been pulled from Yuzu too fast; where had all the time gone? Would it be scary to go to Soul Society as a living person?

“Onii-chan is a poppa,” Yuzu said aloud. “And I need to bring _a gift?”_

Kon appeared from under the bed and grabbed the note from her hand. “Hmmmm.” He perused the writing. “So this is how they announce that Nee-san is going to pop out a baby! Of course you need to bring a gift! _This is a baby shower_.  Google it, Yuzu-chan. And why wasn’t I invited?”

“You can come!” Yuzu picked up Kon and placed him on her lap. “I’ll hide you in a gift box.” She bit her lip. “What if I hadn’t found this note in time? Saturday is tomorrow. Ugh, I’ll have to ask for another day off.” Yuzu worked as a nurse at the hospital.

“Family emergency?” Kon suggested. “Death in the family? We’re going to see a lot of dead people—that is the truth. Don’t start fretting about stuff. I would’ve brought you this note in time—I saw it the other day and knew it was from _them_. I saw it was addressed to you so I didn’t bother picking it up. “

“I might have never found it!” Yuzu stood up, knocking Kon off her lap. “I do know what a baby shower is, silly. I don’t think it’s right to bring a gift, though. _Bad luck_.  I’ll bring you instead.”

Elsewhere, Captain Byakuya was opening an ornate, hand-carved wooden box. Inside were mementos of his sister’s accomplishments. The letter from Yamamoto informing him of Rukia’s passing the lieutenant’s exam, the wedding announcement from the Royal Guard, and now Ukitake’s inane little note regarding some Living World custom.

He held up the invitation. “Yellow, Jushiro?” Byakuya closed his eyes and softly exhaled. A future Kuchiki child the subject of a Living World festival? The appropriateness of the event was questionable, but as a Gotei captain and brother of the honored guest, Byakuya had no choice but to attend.

A personal gift, one of absolute rarity, was required.

Hueco Mundo had no shopping malls, so Neliel was also struggling over what to bring as a gift.  The former king, Baraggan, had once lorded over a stash of stolen books, jewels, and gravestones from the Living World, and while Neliel had raided the king’s treasure mine for reading material in that era, a book didn’t seem like the right gift for a baby. Aizen had built massive buildings and introduced the Arrancar to the pleasures of tea, but not much remained of what Aizen and his two peculiar Shinigami friends had brought to a vast wasteland of Hollow desires blowing across the sands.

Neliel decided she needed to request a portal opening from Queen Harribel to the Living World for the purposes of a shopping excursion. She would ask Pesche to go with her; he had excellent taste.

In the Royal Realm, most guards were not happy about having to intermingle with humans. Hikifune argued that her reiatsu-infused rice-balls were superior to any human-baked cupcakes. “It takes energy to party! I’ll bring them anyway!”  Kirinji insisted that all the Royal Guard that any gift for a super-powered offspring of Ichigo and Rukia would be superfluous and that humans were creepy.

“Ways of the universe are changing,’ Ichibe intoned. “Captain Ukitake informed me that cultural exchanges between worlds will further peace and balance.”

“I’ll make a small crown of immortal white camellias for the infant,” Shutara said, “to match the ones the royal pair wear for formal occasions. Let’s say the gift is from all of us.”

“That settles that,” Ichibe said.

“And some baby booties,” added Shutara. “Tiny white baby booties.”’

“What the devil are booties?” asked Nimaiya, pushing up his sunglasses. “Isn’t booty the human word for butt?”

“Little woven socks to go on the infant’s feet,” Shutara explained. “Like boots, idiot.”

“A Soul Prince or Princess,” Kirinji mused. “Things ain’t what they used to be. What if it’s an evil baby who wants to destroy us all?”

“Shut up,” Hikifune said. “It’s Ichigo and Rukia’s. The child won’t be evil.”

“This event is evil.” Kirinji slumped. “I don’t want to go.”

 

_3._

Anyone observing Ichigo before the party would think that he hadn’t moved since the event was first planned by Ukitake’s lake. The Soul King lay on the grass in his shihakushou and wore a sullen expression. The only difference was his royal crown, the wreath of white camellias, a little lopsided on his orange head.  A young Shinigami at fifty-seven years, Ichigo looked not a day older than when he had defeated Yhwach, a little more muscular, his hair trimmed shorter, his eyes deeper and more attentive.  His wife sat next to him in a folding lawn chair--an unostentatious Queen of the universe, visibly pregnant, in her standard 13th lieutenant’s uniform like Ichigo’s, smiling with anticipation, her posture impeccable, her crown fitted over her tiny head like she had been born to wear it, and her black hair glossier than usual and pouring past her waist.

Non-seated 13th division soldiers were setting up tables and folding chairs. Orihime and some human world friends had come early with food.

“Inoue is showing her age, hmm,” Ichigo said to Rukia.

“Shhh!” Rukia kicked him in the ribs.

“I dunno,” Ichigo lowered his voice to a whisper. “You’d think with her powers she could reverse the aging process or something. I wonder why she doesn’t do that.”

Orihime, by most subjective human standards, was an attractive woman approaching sixty: plump but still voluptuous, her face wide-eyed and delicate-featured. She didn’t appear to care much about looks; she didn’t even dye her hair. A few stray cinnamon strands mingled with white hair which she wore in a neat bun on the top of her head. She also wore a heavy baker’s apron over her party dress and was fussing around the tables— “Scones here, cookies there, and cupcakes everywhere! Put the cupcakes everywhere!” Her cheerfulness was girlish and her beauty, ineffable.

Her husband, Uryuu, stood hands in pockets, looking on bemusedly, lanky as ever, a touch of silver hair at the temples, his Quincy reiatsu making him look at least twenty years younger than the rest of the human gang. Tatsuki had been blessed with an athlete’s slim youthful muscular body, and she and Chad, also still buff but with dark gray hair to his shoulders, were helping soldiers lift stacks of tables and chairs around. Mizuiro and Keigo, looking like mere wrinkled versions of their teenage selves in expensive, brand-name casual-wear, stood next to one another in helpless awkwardness.

The happy hellos had been exchanged a few minutes ago; genuine congratulations over the baby had been expressed; wrapped presents had been placed on a table; now some guests didn’t know what to do or say.

Yuzu, in her sleeveless party dress with the ubiquitous strawberry pin she’d worn as a child, approached her brother again. “It’s weird,” she began timidly. “I could never see spirits very well before. This is my first time here, and now I can see them so clearly.”

“Oh, Yuzu,” said Rukia. “We’ve always met one another in the Living World, didn’t we? Our reiatsu is strong enough you had no problem seeing us.” She looked around at the pleasant 13th division fellows who were as familiar and reliable as the ground she walked on. “I hope today isn’t too overwhelming.”

Yuzu managed a half-smile. “I’m a little out of my element. I told my family I was attending a medical conference. You know, they still think my brother went to America to join the police force there.”

Ichigo shrugged. “Tell them I made police captain. Would be nice to be a captain.”

Rukia kicked Ichigo again. “That’s not even funny. You never would’ve made Gotei captain because you stink at kidou.”

“Don’t need kidou _now,_ do I?”

“Sit up and act royal when guests get here. This is a big deal.”

“Um,” Yuzu interrupted. “Is the baby going to be as super-powered as you both? What do you know about it? I mean, from what you’ve told us before, you both kinda know everything, so can you tell us if it’s going to be a boy or a girl? Or is that … bad luck?”

“Eh,” Ichigo said. “We can see future timelines because we absorbed Yhwach’s power, so I know what the baby is, but Rukia hasn’t looked—she wants to be surprised.”

“Oh,” said Yuzu. “She can do that?”

“I don’t get it,” Ichigo went on. “She can look now and be surprised. Or she can be surprised when the baby comes. Either way, surprise, surprise.”

“I think you’re hungry,” Rukia said to Ichigo. “You get like this when you’re hungry.”

“No you are. Maybe you need to eat some cupcakes before this thing starts. Who knows, maybe you could use extra reiatsu to feed the baby?”

“I do know! I’m perfectly fine!”

A tumult of sandals crossed the bridge to the lakeside. Everyone looked up to see the 11th division, not just the seated officers who had been invited but the whole division; warriors were waving liquor containers high over their heads: sake bottles, jugs of wine and beer. “Spirits!” They chanted. “Spirits for the royal family!”

“Spirits?” Yuzu exclaimed. “I’ve never seen so many! Look how big that one is!” She pointed to Kenpachi. “And that one is the prettiest man I’ve ever seen in my life.” She pointed to Yumichika.

“They can see you pointing,” Ichigo said. “I can’t believe they’re early. They’re always late to everything.”

“Did they really bring alcohol to a baby shower?” Rukia asked.

“I don’t think they got the memo,” Ichigo said. “Wait. I saw the invitation. There was no memo.”

“The captain never has alcohol at Ugendou,” Rukia said. “Everyone knows that. Alcohol isn’t a baby gift.”

“The invitation didn’t specify a gift for the baby,” Ichigo said.

“Ahhh, my error.” Captain Ukitake was strolling by the royal couple. “I’m afraid I didn’t quite make things clear in writing. I did discuss specifics of the cultural event at the last meeting. Dear me, the Kyouraku is always stressing the importance of putting everything in writing. Captain Hitsugaya backed him up on that, but I do dislike giving Toshirou more paperwork.”

Keigo and Mizuiro were already pouring drinks. “Now we’re talking,” Keigo said. “Beer and I don’t know what the hell this other stuff is.”

Mizuiro sipped. “Plum wine?”

“Let’s start with that,” Keigo took a cup. “Tatsuki, want some?”

“Still in training. You should hit the gym too, old-timer. Your wife’s cooking is filling out that belly. Soon you’re going to look as pregnant as Ichigo’s wife.” Tatsuki flexed her bicep at Keigo and set a stack on plates on a table.

“You didn’t bring the wife?” Mizuiro was nibbling a cupcake now. The party had officially begun.

“Kishi was never given a soul ticket.” Keigo looked over the plates of sweets: no crackers, cheese or meats. This was definitely an Inoue Orihime catered affair. “My wife picked out the crocheted baby cap, though. It’s cute. The shape of a strawberry.”

“I got a tiny gold spoon and fork,” Mizuiro said.

“Nice.” Keigo popped a tiny cupcake. “Glad someone brought wine. I was getting royally uptight.”

Rukia stood up from her chair at the sight of the 5th division crossing the bridge. Rolling forward was a large wheeled cart that required six soldiers to pull it; a cloaked object stood on the cart.  The division captain and his lieutenant walked beside the mysterious transport on either side. “Easy, guys,” Renji warned. “Don’t tip it over. Stop when you get to the lakeside.”

“Nii-sama! Renji!”

Renji ran to the royal couple so fast he almost stumbled. He dropped to his knees before Rukia in the most dramatic bow. Ichigo sat up, surprised at the gesture.

“Ichigo, Rukia,” Renji said with his head lowered. “King, Queen, I mean. My captain has brought you a precious noble gift, but I am a man of little resources so I could not – there was nothing remotely worthy I could present the child of the royal couple so— “

“Renji, no— “Ichigo began.

“Please accept my blessings,” Renji continued. “They’re all I have to offer, and even though they’re not worthy, please accept my blessings for strength, wisdom and happiness for this child of yours. He or she will have the best parents—of that I am certain.”

“Oh Renji!” Rukia placed her hand over her heart. “Of course we accept.”

“Rukia, geez, please don’t cry,” Ichigo said in a hushed voice. “You’ll embarrass him.”

Renji stood up, brushed grass off his hakama. “This is a Living World custom, right? Sounds all right to me. To believe in bad luck is stupid. Anyway….” He swallowed and right away recovered from his emotional display. “Babies are always good luck. Ikkaku said so.”

Rukia couldn’t cry anymore; she smiled widely because Renji didn’t believe in bad luck but believed in good luck. So Renji.

“Renji,” Ichigo gestured with his head to 11th division guys happily pouring drinks. “Your old division thought to bring beer.”

“There’s konpeito too!” Ukitake handed Renji a bag of candy. 

“Oh hi Abarai-kun!” Orihime waved. “Uryuu remembered you. He told me to make some taiyaki! Come here! I made three different flavors!”

Other guests were arriving. The Arrancar coalition crossed the gate with Neliel leading. She wore Living World clothes: a baseball cap that read “HOT STUFF,” a pink leopard print mini-skirt, neon green leggings and white fringe boots. She dropped the dozen gift bags she was carrying to wave at Ichigo and Renji. “No one else wanted to shop with me but Pesche!” she shouted. “So I got baby gifts for everyone!”

Uryuu dropped his scone. “Is Pesche here?”

“There,” Orihime pointed. Sure enough, the Desert Brothers were trailing after Harribel and her entourage, all in traditional Espada-wear.

“Grimmjow refused to come,” Harribel explained to Captain Ukitake. “He’s still against the idea of any authority over Hueco Mundo. He sends his regards to Ichigo.”

“Did he really send his regards?” Ichigo asked.

“Yes,” Harribel answered. “He said he still wants to fight you, and he knows he can’t defeat you, but he’s practical enough to know that an event such as this is not the time and place. He says write him into your schedule for a battle.”

“Uh…” Ichigo attempted to scratch his head and his crown fell off. He caught it and put it back on again.

Neliel hugged him and knocked him to his feet. “Ichigooooooooo! I’m so happy you’re going to be a daddy! I was waiting for something like his to happen! What took you and Rukia so long?”

By the time Ichigo wrestled himself out of Neliel’s clutches, there was a small audience around the Soul King waiting for the answer.

“These things decide themselves,” Rukia said. “Such is the way with Soul Society births. Noble Shinigami families have the reiatsu to reproduce large dynasties—such as my captain here.”

“Seven brothers and sisters,” said Ukitake.

“With the Soul King and Queen, who are immortal….” Rukia’s voice trailed off.

“The baby could’ve been born thousands of years from now,” Ichigo added softly.

Byakuya urged his sister to please sit down again and requested that someone bring her some food and water.  Guests drifted around to greet one another. Amidst the crowd, Dondochakka and Renji accidentally careened into one another, and Renji yelled that Dondo had smashed into him on purpose. Mizuiro brought Sung-sun a plate of pink-frosted cupcakes, and she stared at him without a word. The Royal Guard were here, and so were Hikifune’s famous rice-balls. Shutara was stringing the tables with glorious multicolored garlands of bright braided cloth and setting wreaths of white camellias everywhere—to _oohs_ and _ahhs_ from many guests and delighted squeaks from Orihime.

Yuzu sat down next to her brother again. “It is a little strange to think that your baby will be so little while my children are about to graduate high school, and Uryuu and Orihime’s daughter is all grown up and already a famous movie director. Time is so different for you and everyone else. It…” Yuzu cast her eyes downward. “It bothers me just a little that I won’t see your baby grow up.”

Rukia got out of the chair, put her plate on the grass and her arm around Yuzu.

“Our dad was so happy about the baby.” Yuzu went on. “Does he even think about these sorts of things? Is he going to live extra super long because he’s a Shinigami and get to see the baby grow up?”

“Yuzu.” Ichigo’s face became serious. “All my life I’ve tried to protect you. There are some things I think you need to know now.”

Rukia and Yuzu both looked at Ichigo intently.

“I never talked to you about this,” Ichigo went on, “and I understand now why our dad kept things from me and allowed me to discover them on my own. But you never had the opportunity to discover much about worlds outside the Living World by yourself, and I guess Dad isn’t going to tell you so….”

“Tell me what?” Yuzu looked nervous.

“It’s ok,” Rukia said. “He gets a little dramatic like this. You know that.”

“You know about reincarnation,” Ichigo went on. “You know that when you die, you go here. You’ve been told that your memories will be gone and that when you die here, you will go back to the Living World. That’s just the way it works. But your heart remembers. You know that. I told you that. Rukia told you that years ago. Bonds are forever.”

“Yes.” Yuzu’s expression was calmer.

“You know that Rukia and I will never die because of the hougyoku we share, one part inside each of us. Our baby will be immortal too.”

“Yes.”

“Most babies who are born and live and die in Soul Society go through the cycle of reincarnation too. It’s a balance thing because the population in the Living World grows all the time. But do you know that Shinigami are different kinds of souls? They’re … a kind of god who is at the end of the cycle of reincarnation.”

“I don’t know what you mean.”

“See all these men and women in all these divisions?” Ichigo looked around. The 11th division were pouring sake for everyone. Everyone was intent on getting Hanatarou drunk and he was frantically waving his hands and shaking his head.  Captain Ukitake had been persuaded to try a cup of spirits with one of Orihime’s taiyaki.

“They look just like humans,” Yuzu said. “They’re acting pretty silly.”

“Like Dad.” Ichigo smiled.

“Yeah,” Yuzu agreed. “When I found out Dad was a Shinigami, I was blown away. But now seeing all these guys--“

“Shinigami are different. Once you get a zanpakutou, your soul is … just different.” Ichigo said.

“It’s a little hard to explain,” Rukia added, looking to Ichigo because she knew he was trying his best, and she was a little anxious for him to get to his point.

“Shinigami do live a long time,” Ichigo said. “Urahara-san explained this to me once. The stronger a Shinigami is, the longer they live. They can live for thousands and thousands of years unless killed in battle but they eventually die.” He paused for a moment and squinted at the sky. “But they don’t go back to the Living World when they die. They turn into spirit particles, pure reishi. Their reishi is what makes up Soul Society.”

Yuzu was silent for a moment. “You mean Dad will die one day in our world.” She nodded in solemn appreciation of what her brother had explained. “And he’ll be gone forever.”

“Not forever, Yuzu,” Rukia said. “Always in my heart and your brother’s. And his reishi will be part of the Living World.”

Yuzu looked across the party guests. Uryuu had his arm around Orihime. He seemed to be getting along with Pesche just fine—probably with Orihime’s help, chatting amiably. Dondochakka had escaped Renji and was feeding Bawawawa donuts.

“That guy over there has pretty spots,” Yuzu observed, heaving a sigh and wondering if she might reincarnate into a spotty being. “What world is he from? Do souls reincarnate into other worlds?”

“No.” Ichigo said. “Donda is a Hollow. Not like the Hollow in the Living World, who are unevolved monsters. Donda is from Hueco Mundo where Hollow souls live where there’s tons of reiatsu. When they die, they turn to reishi too. Their whole world is a place where souls die, but Rukia and I have seen some possibilities for that world, some frayed future timelines where Hollow souls can grow back their hearts.”

Uryuu tried to take a cupcake that was meant for Bawawawa, and Pesche grabbed it out of his hand and started an argument. Orihime grabbed Uryuu’s hand and Pesche’s hand and shook both hands like she was scolding little boys.

“Are Quincy human?” Yuzu asked. “Uryuu and his dad look so much younger than everyone else.”

“Yes,” Quincy are human,” Ichigo explained. “They were just born with a special power—to obliterate souls out of the cycle of reincarnation. That’s why Ishida told me he and Inoue decided not to raise their kid as a Quincy or teach her how to fight that way. They were going to teach Tsuyu her heritage but not how to kill souls— “

“And the reason Quincy look so young,” Rukia continued, “is because Quincy draw reishi from whatever environment they’re in. When the Quincy lived in a very dense reiatsu-rich place like the Shadow Realm years ago, they lived for thousands of years like Shinigami in Soul Society. In the Living World, they have closer to human life-spans but ….”

Yuzu stared at Uryuu smiling with open affection at his wife. “He’ll outlive her by many, many years, won’t he?”

“It doesn’t matter,” Ichigo said. “Honest. It’s important to love. I wish I could explain it to you better, but you have a family, so I think you kinda understand.”

“Yuzu-chan,” Rukia hugged her sister-in-law again, harder this time. “I know this is a lot for you. I promise to come visit with the baby many, many times.” She gave Ichigo a look. “No fights in the schedule for Grimmjow.” She hugged Yuzu again. “Bonds can never be broken. If there’s anything Ichigo and I are sure from what we can see of the past and future is that while life is fragile, love itself is what nourishes the universe. We’ll bring the baby. You’ll make that bond. Our baby will love everyone, and you’ll love the baby, and all the worlds will be better for that love.”

At her words, Ryuuken and Isshin crossed the bridge. Ryuuken, dressed in white, looked essentially no different from himself thirty years ago, a little craggier around the eyes, a cigarette dangling from his lip. Isshin was in Shinigami garb, out of his older-looking gigai, black hair in a ponytail, carrying two giftbags because Ryuuken obviously could not be bothered to carry his own.

Yuzu burst into tears at the sight.

“Oh shit,” Ichigo said. “Maybe I shouldn’t have said anything.”

Behind the famous daddy pair was the Urahara Shouten gang. “Oh my,” said Urahara, “there’s already liquor everywhere. Maybe we should’ve brought so many cases of champagne!”

“Champagne is very celebratory,” Isshin said.

“Leave it to you, Kisuke,” Ryuuken said, “to bring your favorite beverage instead of something for the child.”

“You didn’t want to buy anything for the baby either,” Isshin grinned. “You’re a selfish prick too, right? You only brought your cigarettes. I had to pick out the baby present for you.”

“It better not be ridiculous or I’ll shoot you.”

“It’s something very cute, and you never shoot me.”

The 11th division raided a champagne case right away and began shaking the glass bottles.

“No, no, don’t do that!” Kisuke fluttered his hands.

Too late—the soldiers were popping corks; the champagne gushed everywhere. _“Now this is a real baby shower!”_ announced Ikkaku as he jumped on a table. Shutara, sitting with a rice-ball under a spray of champagne, startled but didn’t move away.

Ichigo turned to his wife. “Is it too late to stop this? Like, just go back in time or go forward? Wipe their memories?”

“After your lovely talk with Yuzu-chan, I think not.”

“Kenpachi just punched Dondochakka in the mouth. And if you look into all probable futures, in the next half hour, Hisagi will be totally wasted and try to convince everyone he has ban kai, so he’s gonna pull out his zanpakutou and before he can say _ba_ , Kensei will knock him out cold.”

“Everything’s going to be fine.”

“Well, look over there.” Ichigo jutted his chin at the only table piled high with crackers. The Omaeda family had brought the crackers, and Mizuiro was putting the moves on the pretty Omaeda daughter. She was wiping cupcake frosting off Mizuiro’s face, and Sui Feng was walking towards the laughing couple.

“Uh oh,” Rukia said.

Sui Feng pulled Mizuiro off the Omaeda girl, threw him down and put her slipper on his chest. “Try anything with that kid and I kill you. Pervert old man.”

“She’s—she’s like a hundred years older than I am,” Mizuiro sputtered.

“Hey,” said Rukia to Ichigo. “He always did like the older women.”

Sui Feng tapped Mizuiro on the side of his body with her tiny foot and sent him rolling across the grass for several yards.

“She really can kill him,” Ichigo said. “Someone’s going to get killed today. You know it.”

“Will you calm down?” Rukia rolled her eyes. “That only happens in a few outlying timelines. Chances are nobody dies today. I don’t understand why you’re being such a worrywart.”

“Rukia, stop the shower.”

“No.”

Some of the eleventh division guys were still having fun popping champagne. “Baby shower! Baby shower!”

The champagne was sprinkling into the lake now.  “Oh don’t worry about your koi,” Urahara said to Ukitake. “It would take massive amounts of alcohol to alter the water’s chemical balance.” He had rescued an armful of champagne bottles. “Would you like a glass? Only the finest from my shop.”

“Quite all right with my wine here, thanks,” Ukitake giggled. “Just a little bit makes me so giddy.”

A drunk 11th division soldier tripped ran smack into the Kuchiki gift, and the cloak caught around his leg. The man walked off with the cloak, and the gift was revealed.

Rukia clasped her hands at the sight. “Nii-sama!”

“It was supposed to be a surprise, Rukia,” said Byakuya. “I realize there is a proper gift-opening ceremony.”

Standing at the lakeside was a twenty-foot shiny bronze statue of the Seaweed Ambassador, his small left hand holding up what appeared to be a baby rattle.

“I thought it would make a nice addition to the garden in the Royal Realm,” Byakuya said. “The bronze will naturally turn to a light green patina.”

Rukia walked slowly to the statue to admire it close-up. “The Seaweed Ambassador’s natural color, of course.” Others, even Ichigo, followed Rukia.

“The rattle is gilded in silver and must be polished by servants,” Byakuya went on. “You have servants in the Royal Realm, I take it?”

“Uh….” Rukia looked at Ichigo. “We’ll make sure the silver part gets polished.”

“It’s marvelous,” Nimaiya said. “I’ll polish it myself. I have a method for speed-polishing zanpakutou. Rukia, I had no idea your brother was such a talented sculptor.”

“What’s a Seaweed Ambassador?” Yuzu whispered to her brother.

“An Ambassador made of Seaweed,” explained Ichigo. “I can’t really say more. There’s only so much you can handle for today.”

  


_4._

The gift unwrapping ceremony passed without much commotion, mostly because the majority of the guests were uninterested in it and went on eating and drinking. Rukia, Orihime, Neliel, Matsumoto, and Rirukia were the ones transfixed as each present was opened and each tiny baby sweater was held high for all to see.  The squeals from the five made Uryuu cover his ears, and when Shutara’s little camellia crown was revealed, the terrifying pitch of womanly delight caused a few guests to drop their drinks. Uryuu and his father, who as Quincy were sensitive to sound frequencies and the tiniest molecular vibrations, could only stand so much; they walked away together to the furthest side of the lake. Rukia put the camellia crown atop the head of one of the many bunny plushies Rirukia had brought, and the ensuing squeals turned to shrieks; an alarmed Iba rushed to the plushie site because he thought women were being killed.

Hiyori had fashioned a folding, portable trampoline for the baby. The Urahara Shouten, besides bringing champagne, had brought along a small Urahara invention—a reiatsu-powered stroller that also doubled as a bungee one could hang from the ceiling. “Truly the gift that grows with any super-powered infant,” he bragged. “If the kid flies away in it, just let me know and I’ll make adjustments.” No gift matched the Kuchiki statue in terms of expense or sheer audience appeal until the Shiba clan showed up with their statue. Ganju admitted right away that it had been a commission, of course, and not a personal work of art by any Shiba, but it stood just as tall as Byakuya’s Seaweed Ambassador, and when rolled off its cart, the rivalry between the two old clans seemed to face off again in the form of inanimate sculptures.

“The same guy who made the giant arms over our rooftop made this,” said Kuukaku. “He works cheap but he’s so talented.”

“I’m sure,” Byakuya said, unconvincingly, “that it will make a noble addition to the royal garden.”

Ganju pulled off the covering with a flourish, and Kuukaku went “ha ha!”

Guests stopped eating, and everyone stared.

The statue was bronze also, an accurate likeness of Shiba Kuukaku herself, twenty feet tall, topless, her breasts gleaming, her one good arm held high and carrying a clear crystal orb, her other arm a nude unbandaged stub. The bottom half of her body was covered by the merest loin cloth that hung in two strips below her hips and draped between muscular thighs. Her feet were bare, toes spread as if they were only cooperating with gravity the way the Shiba clan barely tolerated customs and laws; freedom was only a cannonball ride away to the sky.

“Yowsa,” said Isshin. “Good looks run in this family.”

Byakuya shot his sister a look. “Rukia, you can’t put that in the garden.”

“Why?” Kuukaku fired back. “Because she’s a naked woman? She represents fertility, nobility and freedom! What does your statue represent anyway? It … looks like… I don’t know what that tuft of stuff is. Is it a person made of porridge?”

“You wouldn’t understand,” Byakuya said.

“Oh yeah, someone told me about your speech. Something about seaweed. No one has to polish the ball on my statue, you know, because _it’s a real spirit ball.”_

“The Shiba clan never did have any taste,” Byakuya muttered.

“Take that back!” Ganju stuck his chest out. “You don’t talk to my sister like that or about any of us like that—or—or I’ll knock those fancy kenseikan right out of your snooty hair.”

“STOP IT RIGHT NOW!” Ichigo had been sitting with a pile of baby socks in his lap, and he shook one at Ganju. “There’s room in the garden for both these statues, just like….” He realized he was shaking a baby sock with tiny pom-poms on the cuffs to make his point and put it down. “There’s room in the Soul Society for both the Shiba clan and the Kuchiki clan, and there’s room in the universe for all kinds of opinions! Especially about art. This isn’t about saving lives or anything big like that!”

There was an awkward silence for a moment, and then Byakuya spoke. “You’re becoming a wise king, Ichigo. Of course, there’s room in the royal garden for any gift from the Shiba clan. Please accept my apologies for any offense toward your thoughtful present.” He nodded at Kuukaku then turned his attention to his sister. “Rukia, forgive me for any disturbance I may have caused on this special day.” As he spoke, an 11th division member ran past yelling that the manly men dance was going to happen over by the big maple tree.  Byakuya continued, “I did not wish to bring you any discomfort on what should only be a day of pure happiness for you.”

Rukia looked from her brother to Ichigo back to her brother again as if witnessing the rebirth of the world right before her eyes. “Oh Nii-sama, please don’t ask for my forgiveness. I couldn’t be happier. Please, everything is fine. I’m enjoying myself. Truly.”

“Eh, you’re ok by me, Kuchiki,” Kuukaku said. “Care to explain to me what this manly men dance is all about? Or is that something I need to see with my own eyes?”

“The latter perhaps.”

“Will you be participating?”

“I doubt it.”

Everyone began strolling in the direction of the big maple tree, and Rukia’s female companions, especially Rirukia, were very curious about watching manly men dancing.

The Soul King and Queen were left alone at the baby gift table.

“Y’know,” said Ichigo. “My dad really wants to know the sex of the baby. Should I tell him?”

“Sounds to me,” said Rukia, “that for some reason, you’re the one who wants _me_ to know.”

“Aw c’mon. Just take a look. What could it hurt?” Ichigo smiled, broke a scone in half and threw a part to Ukitake’s fish in the lake.

“See, _I told you_ your mood would get better if you ate,” Rukia said. “Aren’t all these cupcakes delicious? Did you see the chocolate-covered strawberries Hikifune brought just for you? She was growing strawberries early in the season just for this party. I put the box away so people wouldn’t eat them. This shower hasn’t been so bad after all, admit it.”

Ichigo wiped his hands with a napkin so he wouldn’t get crumbs on the baby socks. “I ate all the chocolate strawberries already. Please, Rukia. It would make it a bigger deal if you found out today instead of when you’re actually pushing the baby out. That day is going to be a little freaky for me, and I’d rather you find out today when I can enjoy it.”

Rukia made a face. “That freaky day when I push the baby out should be a happy one for you too, Ichigo.”

“I just…” Ichigo gathered all the socks and laid them gingerly on the table. “I’m not quite sure I know how to handle all this yet. I want us both to be on the same page. Prepared. Do you know what I mean?”

“You talking about being prepared. Now I’ve heard everything.”

“Hey,” Ichigo protested. “Everyone’s been telling me all my life that I rush headlong into things, so you can’t start making fun of me when I try to put the brakes on that. _I’ve got a serious job now, not just as Soul King but as a father,_ and I need to learn to balance my nature. I’m learning stuff here.”

“I’m sorry, Ichigo.” Rukia was immediately repentant. She looked at her husband with her most gentle-eyed and sincere expression. “Does it mean _that much_ to you for me to know?”

“Yes.”

Rukia cast her violet eyes heavenward. She scanned future timelines for one, two, three seconds, and then she gasped.

Ichigo smiled broadly. “I know, right?”

“Twins!” Rukia exclaimed. “I wasn’t expecting that at all! Now we can use both names we were considering!”

“Uhhh, I dunno,” Ichigo said. “I’m still not sold on either. We’ll talk about it. They’re both a little old-fashioned. In my family, kids get fun names but … whatever. I can always give them nicknames.”

Rukia rolled her eyes at the very idea. “At least now we know we can name one the Kuchiki surname and call the other a Kurosaki—how’s that for everything working out?”

“Who gets to be the Kurosaki? The girl or the boy?”

“Let’s make it opposite of you and me—the girl is a Kurosaki and the boy is a Kuchiki.”

“That’s fine. Sounds pretty balanced.”

“Oh!” Rukia was strolling along the gift table. She picked up the bunny plush with the camellia crown. “Shutara will have to make another one of these!”

“No prob—she can pop those out like nothing.”

“Nii-sama’s gift is still the most amazing, isn’t it?” Rukia hugged the bunny plush to her chest and looked in the direction of Seaweed Ambassador. “Let’s put him near the fountains.”

“Where we gonna hide the naked lady?”

“Shut up! It’s a gift from your own Shiba clan. You said yourself it was important. Your kids need to treasure it! We’ll put it where’s there’s a lot of greenery and life—“

“To cover her up.”

“She’s beautiful,” insisted Rukia.

Ichigo stood up and took his wife by the hand. “ _You’re_ beautiful,” he said, and the two walked along the lakeside for a while. Rukia wanted to know why Ichigo didn’t want to join the manly men dance because she knew for a fact that he’d participated in it before, and Ichigo said that now that he was more mature he wasn’t as subject to Shinigami peer pressure. They both noted that they couldn’t see much of the immortal lifetimes of their future children, that even though the heartbeats of the children could be sensed by both parents holding hands, the threads of possibilities became so dense that were no longer wavering, visible and within reach; in that far-away future, the millions of possibilities and ribbons of time knotted into an impenetrable ball. The uncertainty didn’t worry Ichigo and Rukia; uncertainty was more familiar to them than omniscience. Ichigo was more worried about baby spit-up and diapers. He had a vague memory of how much his own twin sisters had vomited everywhere—was it Yuzu who puked every time she ate tomatoes?

“I’m a little scared,” Ichigo said.

Rukia stopped walking. “I’ve never heard you say those words before.”

“It’s the responsibility,” Ichigo explained. “Ruling worlds, fighting bad guys—I know there are other guys like Ukitake and the Captain Commander and Ichibe who have our backs and are helping us prepare to be rulers and warriors. But being a dad? My dad—he was great and all, but….”

“What’s the worst that can happen? You drop one of the kids on the head? They’re immortal. They can take it. Your dad used to toss you out the window every morning, and you turned out fine.”

Ichigo breathed out a long sigh. “I know that. It’s just…” He sat down on the grass. The bright colored fish had followed him in hopes of more treats. Mouths gaping, they stared at him from the clear water with glassy eyes. “What if our kids turn out like Yhwach? I mean, we absorbed Yhwach. Aizen too—there’s all this stuff inside us.”

“Pfft.” Rukia lowered herself, with a little effort but amazing grace, next to Ichigo and crossed her ankles.  “Do you really believe for one moment that between the two of us and all our love such an abomination as Yhwach can rise again? And that if we even caught a whiff of such a thing being possible, we wouldn’t put a stop to it before it became real?”

“You’re right.” Ichigo made a kissy face back at the fishes.

“See,” said Rukia. “You already know how to play with babies. You make faces with them. It’s not hard. I know we don’t have any Shinigami friends who have babies, and even Momo and Toshirou haven’t had a baby yet, but we can get all kinds of pointers from Inoue and Yuzu. You should talk to Ishida. He was a very involved dad from what I remember—he can ease your mind about some worries. I don’t think you’re as worried about an evil Yhwach offspring as you are about poop explosions.”

“Explosions?” Ichigo’s face froze mid-kissy face. “What do you mean _explosions?_ ”

“I’ll show you some books,” Rukia said. “There are so many books in the 4th division library.  And Ishida is a doctor. You should consult him more, you know. He’ll be around a long time, and when he comes to Soul Society, it will be with his memory intact the way Ginjou and Tsukishima came. With a soul as pure as his, he may even want to join the Gotei—he’s your best ally, Ichigo. You need to talk to him about poop explosions and so much more.”

“Yeah, Ishida,” Ichigo said. “He’s got a busy schedule at the hospital, but I should go bother him some. He’ll get all excited to give me parenting advice, I’m sure.” Ichigo looked far off, towards the direction of the maple tree, where the chorus of _If you want to be a man who’s talked about, fight me, come at me!_ was being sung over and over. “Did Ginjou and Tsukishima make it here?”

“Oh yes. You were hiding somewhere when the Fullbringers arrived. They all had packages of cute things Rirukia had picked out. Yukio brought the baby a gaming platform he swore wouldn’t go out of style very soon—I think it’s a modified reality warping box, nothing too fancy, but a nice toy.”

“Oh yeah, there they all are. Rirukia’s sweet on Tsukishima still, isn’t she? She’s not even looking at the half-naked Shinigami.”

“Half-naked?” Rukia squinted. “Why did the guys take their tops off?”

“Shinigami men’s club thing. Iba used to make us walk around in towels and put on sunglasses.”

“And my brother was complaining about the naked lady Shiba statue! The hypocrisy!” Rukia folded her arms so they rested on her round belly. “Rirukia and Tsukishima make a fine couple. It’s not like the dead/living thing hasn’t worked out before. I mean, look at us. It can be a long-distance relationship, but who knows?”

“You’re going to going to hover over them in a little while and come back and tell me what happens with them, aren’t you?” Ichigo threw himself back on the grass. The sun was lower in the sky. A soft breeze blew across the lake and through his hair.

“Maybe, maybe not,” Rukia said. “I like real love stories. The books we always bring back from the Living World start out ok but end up disappointing me. It’s like writers want to sell books and show off their skills, but they don’t stay true to what’s real about love.”

“Eh, you’re probably buying crap stuff. Get some recommendations from Nanao. She knows good books.”

The sounds of the manly man singing and dancing had died out. Laughter still rang, and from even the far distance, Ichigo and Rukia could hear the smashing of plates and a table falling over. The Kuchiki and Shiba statues were sturdy and safe, no doubt, and Hanatarou knew where to hide. The 11th division were a rowdy bunch but a crew bound by love, everyone knew that, and Ichigo suspected that the worst of the party was over as some drunken guests were probably tiring out and falling sleep. The Soul King, on the grass, shut his eyes. “Ever feel like our story has been … kinda unreal?”

“It’s the most real thing I’ve ever felt,” Rukia said. “Maybe when you compare it to what happens to other souls, others don’t end up Soul King and Queen, but I imagine that there are millions of couples out there who are just like us. Destined to be with each other in many timelines, over multiple reincarnations. Soulmates. And just like us, they go through being not sure of their feelings for one another. They fight; they say goodbye; they come back together.”

“They start families,” Ichigo added. “Learn about poop explosions.”

“What’s the matter, Ichigo?” Kon jumped out from behind a thatch of tall reeds. “I thought you knew everything! Ever been to the zoo? Poop explosions everywhere!”

“You didn’t surprise us at all,” Ichigo said. “We knew you were there.”

“Yeah,” Rukia said. “We knew you were there from the moment Yuzu showed up with her giftbox. You always sneak along to places.”

“Trust me, I don’t always want to.” Kon put his hands on his hips. “Most places you guys went were terrifying. Here, not so bad. That Rirukia chick adores me and has been cooing all over me like I’m the real King of New Yooooork!”

“She likes cute,” Ichigo said. “She must think your little ragged ass is cute, although I don’t see why. Why don’t you get Ishida to sew up your ear? It’s falling off again.”

“Speak of the devil, or the Quincy.” Kon pointed down the path where Orihime and Uryuu were approaching. Orihime was carrying a basket of her baked goods, and Uryuu held a couple corked jugs.

“Is anything wrong?” Orihime asked as they came closer. “Or did you two want some private time?” She gave the basket to Rukia. “Some food and water. Oh look, Captain Ukitake’s fish followed you!”

“We weren’t into the manly men thing,” Ichigo said. “Hey Ishida, when you get a minute or so, I’m going to want to get some parenting advice from you. I might be a king and everything, but there are some things I don’t have practical experience with, and I heard you were a great dad.”

Uryuu startled. He hands rose and his upper body leaned backwards as if he had been pushed. “Parenting advice?”

“Oh Tsuyu was a challenging little girl.” Orihime laughed. “Uryuu knew when to be gentle and when to be strong. Oh, you must tell them about that time she ran off with a Quincy bracelet and pulled a bow on a perfectly innocent civilian! She was only five!”

“In her defense,” Uryuu said, “she thought the guy was a sexual predator like the ones kids are warned about at school and on television. She wanted to kill a bad guy. I had to talk to her about not rushing to judgement.”

“Sexual predators?” Ichigo’s voice was panicky.

“No, you don’t have to worry about that just yet.” Uryuu started to talk faster than he usually did.  “I have no idea what royal Shinigami babies are like, but first things first. Establishing a natural sleep schedule, a gradual transition to solid food, making sure the baby gets equal time stimulation and rest—oh and most importantly, guarantee that the mother doesn’t do all the work and gets sufficient support.”

Orihime and Rukia beamed.

“I’ll have to schedule some time to talk to you about this stuff in the Living World,” Ichigo said. “As it is, we barely see you guys.”

Uryuu’s smiled. He had never smiled much in his youth, but this smile was broad and genuine.

“Rukia,” Ichigo sifted through the basket until he found a matcha-colored scone; he bit into it and threw the rest to the fish. “Y’know what?” He talked while chewed. “I know Ichibe and the Captain Commander want us to do all this traveling to other worlds and stuff for the good of the universe, but I think we should prioritize our best friends more. I mean, time is precious—for them. They have a lot to teach us, more so than many strangers we meet all the time. Haven’t our friends always been the ones who taught us the most?”

“You’re right,” Rukia said. “Our bonds are stronger to them. Our children— _our child’s_ bond should be stronger to them in this special time. A baby’s first years are so important.”

“Nee-san!” Kon hugged Rukia’s belly with a sob, but Rukia plucked him off, so Kon jumped on Ichigo and hugged Ichigo’s neck. “We’re going to see more of you!”

Orihime was clasping her hands. “Your father and sisters and going to be so happy to hear this news!”

When the five stragglers walked back to the party, guests appeared to be winding down. Most 11st division members were unconscious, either from drink or having been slugged in an argument. Zaraki Kenpachi was still standing drinking champagne and burping. Matsumoto had traded her waraji sandals for Neliel’s white fringe boots. Hikifune had transformed from her slim self to her engorged self from all the food and looked satiated and beatific.  A shirtless Tsukishima, his suspenders hanging at his waist, was playing darts with Ikkaku, who wore no kosode or undershirt. Ikkaku was hitting all his darts in the center of the chalk-drawn target on the maple tree. “He’s not that lucky,” Yumichika cheered, clapping. “Just highly skilled!” Isshin, Ganju and Kuukaku, for some inexplicable Shiba reason, were doing headstands, and Ryuuken was circling the trio, blowing cigarette smoke, his natural sarcasm having its own party.

Kirinji, Royal Guard, stood next to Karin, human woman. The two were sharing a plate of Omaeda crackers and laughing it up.

“I thought this party would be a total bummer,” Kirinji said as Ichigo approached him. “Humans aren’t so bad.” Then under his breath, he added, “Your sister’s bazoombas are out of this world.”

“THAT’S IT.” Ichigo right arm shot up. “Party’s over. Everyone, Rukia and I thank you for your gifts and wonderful company. It’s been great, really. I hope you all had a nice time, but it’s been a few hours now, and the mother is tired… and… and… we’ll see everyone for another party real soon after the child is born.” He looked at Captain Ukitake. “Portals will be opening up for everyone soon to go back to your respective worlds.” Ichigo then looked to Isshin. “Uh, when you’re done being upside down, Dad, I need to talk to you for a second before you go. Have to tell you what you asked about.” Then the Soul King clapped his hands twice the way he’d seen Yul Brenner do in _The King and I._ “Ok, done. Let’s start cleaning up! I’ll help!”

Rukia tugged Ichigo by the sleeve. “Hey, you stopped the shower yourself.”

“Somebody had to. The Captain didn’t put an end-time on the invitation. These guys would have stayed until the kids were born.”

“Look,” said Rukia. “The fish followed you again.”

“That’s only because I fed them,” Ichigo said.

“Probably,” Rukia said. “But you and I and all the 13th division members feed them along with Captain Ukitake all the time. They may just like Orihime’s baking… or maybe they’re trying to tell you that you’re going to be a good daddy.”

“That’s just plain silly, Rukia.”

“I don’t know. Fish are reincarnated souls too.”

Ichigo looked at the gathered bright fish in the clear lake. Their transparent fins wavered, and their mouths opened and closed. He sensed their souls, fish hearts full of longing and affection. Ichigo knew that in the world Captain Komamura had come from, beasts and humans were of a combined form, sharing the best and worst of their respective natures. That world was still forbidden, as were some other worlds like Hell, to Shinigami, but Ichigo wanted to explore that beast world one day. What did the souls of fish in the Seireitei have to teach him? They lived simply, grew larger and stronger over thousands of years, travelled in communities, avoided predators, ate smaller fish but didn’t practice war, kept low in the winter and sought the warm surface of the lake in the summer. They recognized voices and music, always darted to the edge of the pond at the sound of the Captain’s “good morning.” Like all things in the universe, as the Fullbringers said, the fish were bound to everything else. Everything, even a blade of grass, had some sort of soul, some sort of knowledge.

He threw another piece of scone into the lake. It dissolved there quickly, and the fish inhaled the bits.

“Eh, each one of you would make a nice meal. You’re all so fat.” Ichigo crumbled the next scone so the smaller fish could get more. “What do you know that I don’t? I have so much to learn.”

“We all do.” Rukia took Ichigo by the arm and looked over the water. The breeze blew strands of black hair across her face. “We all have so much to learn.”

It was so true. Even omniscience did not come with the bonus of experience. Nor save one from dread of the unknown.

Rukia turned to Ichigo and smiled. She was fearless; she was looking forward to the future with all her heart.

Ichigo leaned in for a kiss. Omniscience never deprived him of the anticipation of the warmth of Rukia’s love and support.  When his lips met hers, his fears were gone. Whatever future they had walk through, they would walk through together.

 

_END_

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


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